It's the same old story: how do we find good
salespeople? First, let's take a SWAG (sophisticated wild ass
guess) at defining what a good one is. The following is a rough
list of the attributes of acceptable staff in some semblance
of order:

1. Sells at least $50,000 monthly
2. Has happy customers, credits below the median, and writes
credits in a timely manner
3. Has good attendance and a good attitude
4. Protects our margins by not just selling on price (Pinnacle
will
track this for you, but it's more difficult in Hollander and
AutoInfo.)
5. Is willing to train and mentor others

Now, how do we get one, train one, and keep
one? Where do they come from? I have seen ex-shoe salespersons
sell over $200,000 monthly, and others who appeared competent
with good attitudes that after a year of training couldn't sell
$25,000 per month. I am firmly convinced that they don't have
to come from within our industry. If you can, hire a good one
from within the industry, and you should of course always consider
promoting from within. In all cases, some criteria should be
used in hiring, training and evaluating.

If you don't have some written policies, consider
putting some together for salespersons. Also, although I have
seen strict sales scripting, and no scripting, I am convinced
that some folks have the gift needed for this job; others simply
don't. (More on how to ascertain that in a moment.) Please read
"First Break All The Rules". This book devotes a whole
chapter to why scripting does and doesn't work, and will provide
useful insight into why some folks have what it takes and some
don't. The book is also helpful in understanding how to have
happier employees, and what that can mean to your profits.

Make sure that you have a good job description,
albeit brief, for all new applicants. Some folks use personality
testing: I don't have a strong opinion on its usefulness. (Please
send me more info on these tests if you know of successes.)

The key? (Other than making the best hire you
believe possible.) Make sure that you have some reasonable milestones
for the new staff, following a week or so of training and tutorials
with existing staff. I see folks lingering with weak staff 6
months after they are hired, "hoping" they will get
better. The gift of gab, quick thinking, and other skills necessary
to fill this position will present themselves within days, certainly
within weeks of placement. If your goal is $50k per month as
a minimum level of acceptability, $15,000 in the first month
ISNT GOING TO MAKE IT. In the second month, use $26-$35k as
a minimum requirement. Set your own minimum milestones and make
sure the applicant knows those goals, in advance. I even prefer
to break the goals into weeks as well. (For instance, if the
second month's goal is $30k, make the first week $5,500, but
the last week $8,500.) There is simply no reason to keep a salesperson
whose sales trend isn't directionally correct. When they stall
at $30k, they can stay there for months, even years.

I recently saw an owner of a new yard put
someone in place that they thought could do the job. After about
six weeks, it became obvious that this person just didn't have
what it takes. The owner got lucky and replaced the weak person
with someone that could do the job and had three near record
days in a row. We lose a lot of potential sales fooling around
with weak salespersons. Also, all salespersons should be on
commission; the days of salary are gone. This is one of many
areas of pay-for-performance, which I help owners with on every
consulting assignment.

Next month: More good stuff from Chapter
5.

Remember, only you can make BUSINESS GREAT! Please e-mail
Ron if you would like previous articles.
You can learn more about Ron Sturgeon at rdsinvestments.com
— click on "more about Ron Sturgeon".) He can
be reached at 5940 Eden, Haltom City, TX 76117.

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